Skyla S. Hearn: Week Eleven at the Woodson_Harsh

A Moment of Remembrance

One of the preliminary tests during the application process for this fellowship was to complete an evaluation summary for The HistoryMakers Dr. Margaret Taylor-Burroughs oral history interview. Prior to the time I viewed the interview, Dr. Burroughs had made her transition into the after life. I was pinched with the pain of knowing that I would never get to meet the great woman I watched in the interviews. For that reason, I cried as I completed the evaluation. While the tears poured down my face, I realized my professional mission had become more concrete and that my goals to highlight African American contributions to society in archival collections was no longer a dream but my reality. http://www.thehistorymakers.com/biography/margaret-burroughs-40

 A Moment of Silence

At this time, I feel a similar pain as I mourn the loss of Marva Lee Pitchford-Jolly, also a HistoryMaker, in her own right. I was able to get a little closer and gain the opportunity of having had many phone conversations with Mrs. Pitchford-Jolly. She participated in the Art of a Community Speaks--Across Generations, an inter-generational  program I coordinated with artists, historians, archivists and community members for the South Side Community Art Center and the University of Chicago. She was so vibrant, comical and good-spirited in addition to an amazing sculptor, educator and loved one. We will miss her beautiful spirit and artwork. http://www.thehistorymakers.com/biography/marva-lee-pitchford-jolly-41

The wheels continued to turn with little to no new developments by way of photograph archival processing. Truly, there is never a dull moment in the office when the H.A.P.P. Team are all present. Nothing beats listening to Kai describe a meal from Harold's Chicken. Somehow he's successfully compared that bag of fried delights to a Christmas present. I don't quite get it but the analogy is one of the best I've heard in a long time. My mind often drifts into thinking about where the Harold Pierce archival collection lives and how if the Harsh acquired the collection, exhibitions highlighting the connection to the culture of Chicago through Harold's Chicken since the 1950s would be on display in the Harsh Gallery for all to see.